The Pentagon’s fighter jet F-35 may not be fully operational until 2019 due to a newly discovered computer glitch. The $400 billion ultra-sophisticated jet, the most expensive in US history, was expected to enter service in 2015.

F-35 is the fifth generation combat aircraft which is designed in
three variations for US Air Force, Navy and Marines to replace
out of date aircraft. It was planned to join the Marines in 2015
and Air Force in 2016.

However, the most awaited plane’s main weapon will not be able to
fire due to a computer glitch. The four-barreled rotary cannon
for the Air Force version of the F-35 cannot function until new
software is elaborated, despite jet scheduled to join the army
this year.

“There will be no gun until [the Joint Strike Fighter’s
Block] 3F [software], there is no software to support it now or
for the next four-ish years,” an Air Force official
affiliated with the F-35 program told the Daily Beast. “Block 3F is slated
for release in 2019, but who knows how much that will slip?”

This problem is especially acute as this version of the jet is
planned for close air support (CAS) operations. While the F-35 is
equipped with other armaments, it might be not enough.

“Lack of forward firing ordnance in a CAS supporting aircraft
is a major handicap,” an experienced pilot commented for the
Daily Beast. “CAS fights are more fluid than air
interdiction, friendlies and targets move... Often times quickly.
The ability to mark the target with rockets and attack the same
target 10 seconds later is crucial.”

Equipped with a gun, Air Force’s F-35A version barely carries
enough ammunition. Despite being able to shoot 3,300 rounds per
minute, it will only be carrying 180 to 220 rounds.

The two other versions of F-35 - for the Navy and Marine Corps -
have different configurations with external gun pods, however,
they will not have a software for them either, the Daily Beast
reported.

F-35 production has been facing delays and cost overruns due to
numerous software problems and production defects. The jet which
has already cost $400 billion dollars to US taxpayers since the
program started in 2006. The costs doubled since the start of
construction in 2011 making it the most expensive project in
military history.

However, the Pentagon denied the aircraft will be delayed, the
International Business Times reports as well as neither Lockheed
nor the F-35 Joint Program Office responded to inquiries.

Last December, a problem with fuel was discovered. The engine of
the aircraft can shut down when the fuel gets too hot to work as
a coolant, although this information was disputed by the
Pentagon.

Last summer, the F-35 was supposed to be the star attraction at
the Farnborough Air Show in Hampshire, but it did not appear
after the entire fleet was grounded after a fire at a Florida
airbase in June.

The Pentagon plans to buy 2,433 jets in three variations. Great
Britain has also ordered 14 jets. However, the program is getting
more and more severe criticism.

“To me, the more disturbing aspect of this delay is that it
represents yet another clear indication that the program is in
serious trouble,” an Air Force official told the Daily
Beast. “F-35 maker “Lockheed Martin is clearly in a situation
where they are scrambling to keep their collective noses above
the waterline, and they are looking to push non-critical systems
to the right in a moment of desperation.”

The F35 is designed and
built by American Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company which
manufactures the widely spread military aircraft F-16, also known
as the Fighting Falcon, successful all-weather multirole
plane.